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Ry 534+MAFY/Rayda 1
Robin 1996 b: figs 4-5; Ryckmans, Gonzague 1955: pl. I
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Late Sabaic | ||||||||
| Script | Ancient South Arabian | ||||||||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||||||||
| Text direction | Right-to-left | ||||||||
| Text appearance | Raised | ||||||||
| Execution technique | Incision | ||||||||
| Chronology |
| ||||||||
| Textual typology | Construction text |
TEXT
1 Mrṯdʾln Yrm bn Hmdn w-S¹ʾrn w-ʾs³wf w-ʾgrʿ bn Mr±[... ... ] brʾw w-hs²qr mkrbn Brk l-ʾl<n>
2 mrʾ s¹myn w-ʾrḍn l-wfy ʾmrʾ-hmw ʾbkrb ʾs¹ʿd w-Ḥs³±[n Y]hʾmn w-Mʿdkrb Yhnʿm w-Mrṯdʾln Y—
3 zʾn w-S²rḥbʾl Yʿfr ʾmlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn w-Ḥḍrmwt w-±[Ymn]t w-l-ḫmr-hm ʾln mrʾ s¹myn w-ʾrḍn
4 ṣbs¹ s¹m-hw w-wfy ʾfs¹-hmw w-nẓr-hmw w-s²(w)±[ʿ-h]mw b-ḍrm w-s¹lmm wrḫ-hw ḏ-
5 Ḫrfn ḏ-l-ṯlṯt w-ʾrbʿy w-ḫms¹ mʾt±[m] s¹lwm w-s¹lwm mkrbn Bryk
| 1-2 | For the addition of the "n", cf. l. 3. The phrase "is the result of inattention on the scribe’s part (who erroneously omitted the nūn at the end of the line) rather than a different phrase." (Robin and Rijziger 2018: 279). |
| 3 | for Ymnt see Robin 2013: 131-133. |
| 4 | w-s²w[f-h]mw (Ryckmans); w-s²ʿ[b-h]mw (Beeston 1981 c: 69, note 32). |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 Mrṯdʾln Yrm of Hmdn and S¹ʾrn and ʾs³wf and ʾgrʿ ibn [... ...] built and finished the synagogue Brk for ʾl, 2 the Master of the heaven and of the land, for the safety of their lords ʾbkrb ʾs¹ʿd and Ḥs³n Yhʾmn and Mʿdkrb Yhnʿm and Mrṯdʾln Y- 3 zʾn and S²rḥbʾl Yʿfr, the kings of Sabaʾ, ḏu-Raydān, Ḥaḍramawt and Ymnt and in order that ʾln, the Master of the heaven and of the land, might give them 4 the honour of his name, and the safety of their persons, their privileged members, and their vassals in war and peace. In the month of 5 Ḫrfn of the year five hundred forty-three. Peace, peace, synagogue Bryk. |
| 4 | "la crainte révérencieuse (?)" (Robin). |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Support type | Architectural structure |
| Material | Stone |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Rayda |
| Ancient site | Rydt |
| Geographical area | Rayda |
| Country | Yemen |
| Found | Reemployed. In modern times |
| Archaeological context | Religious context: Synagogue Brk |
| Notes | Reemployed in a private house (Ry 534) at Rayda, and in a mosque (MAFY/Rayda 1) near this city. |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
Before the Late Sabaic period mrʾ was usually followed by persons and referred to a superiority in the social hierarchy.
In the monotheistic texts the use of the term in the expression mrʾ s¹myn must be considered in Robin's opinion (2003: 119) a loanword from Aramaic.
In the monotheistic texts the use of the term in the expression mrʾ s¹myn must be considered in Robin's opinion (2003: 119) a loanword from Aramaic.
The term s¹lwm is a chalque of the Hebrew "shalōm" and is used in the monotheistic inscriptions by Jewish believers. See also Ir 71.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Ryckmans, Gonzague 1955: 308-312, pl I | Ryckmans, Gonzague 1955. Inscriptions sud-arabes. Douzième série. Le Muséon, 68: 297-312. |
| Robin 1977 a: 305-309 | Robin, Christian J. 1977. Le pays de Hamdān et Ḫawlān Quḍāʾa (Nord-Yémen) avant l'Islam. (Université Pantheon-Sorbonne, Paris I). |
| Robin 1996 b: 703-706, figs 4-5 | Robin, Christian J. 1996. Le royaume ḥujiride, dit «royaume de Kinda» entre Ḥimyar et Byzance. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres: 665-714. |
| Gajda 1997: 13-14 | Gajda, Iwona 1997. Ḥimyar gagné par le monothéisme (IVe-VIe siècle de l'ère chrétienne). Ambitions et ruine d'un royaume de l'Arabie méridionale antique. (Université d'Aix-en-Provence). |
| Müller, Walter W. 2010: 62 | Müller, Walter W. 2010. Sabäische Inschriften nach Ären datiert. Bibliographie, Texte und Glossar. (Veröffentlichungen der Orientalischen Kommission, 53). Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag. |
| Robin 2003 | Robin, Christian J. 2003. Le judaïsme de Ḥimyar. Arabia. Revue de Sabéologie, 1: 97-172. |
| Beeston 1981 c | Beeston, Alfred F.L. 1981. Notes on Old South Arabian Lexicography XII. Le Muséon, 94: 55-73. |
| Robin 2013 | Robin, Christian J. 2013. À propos de Ymnt et Ymn: « nord » et « sud », « droite » et « gauche », dans les inscriptions de l'Arabie antique. Pages 119-140 in Françoise Briquel-Chatonnet, Catherine Fauveaud and Iwona Gajda (eds). Entre Carthage et l’Arabie heureuse. Mélanges offerts à François Bron. (Orient & Méditerranée, 12). Paris: de Boccard. |
| Robin and Rijziger 2018: 479 | Robin, Christian J. and Rijziger, Sarah 2018. "The Owner of the Sky, God of Israel" in a new Jewish Ḥimyaritic inscription dating from the fifth century CE. Der Islam, 95/2: 271-290. 2019/10/08; https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2018-0050. |